Numerical simulation of flow-induced bi-directional oscillations

Flow-induced vibration (FIV) by vortex shedding behind a submerged cylinder can lead to damage of nuclear components. With respect to such a serious scenario, various experiments and numerical simulations have been conducted to predict the vibration phenomena. Especially in simulation, the immersed finite element method (IFEM) is a promising approach to solve fluid-structure interaction problems because it needs less computational resources. In this paper, two-dimensional motions of cylinders are simulated by using IFEM to obtain their vibration characteristics. Three benchmark tests such as flow past a fixed circular cylinder, in-line oscillation of a circular cylinder and flow-induced vibration with uni-directional motion are performed to verify the proposed numerical method. Furthermore, bi-directional motions of two horizontally and vertically arranged cylinders as well as that of a single cylinder in fluid flow are analyzed, and then key findings are fully discussed. (c) 2012 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.